magssnowy05a

Comment by Paul Nowack on May 29, 2009 at 1:21pm

This is the rare, Pleistocene setter! Seriously, my dear Maggie has the strangest coat that I've ever seen on an Irish Setter. It is VERY thick and wooly. She actually has a shaggy beard and a top knot of hair. Everyone thinks that she is a red Afghan. Like all of my setters, she is from the Fleetwood Farm's blood line. I don't know if this kennel is known worldwide. Paul

Comment by Anna Kazimierowicz on May 29, 2009 at 5:30pm

Was she spayed???
I'm asking because we had lately discusion about spaying/castration of dog and results of this treatment. Many people said about changes in coat - it becames wooly, much more light than usually. It seams for me that Maggie looks alike described but others who has spayed/castrated dogs??

Comment by Paul Nowack on May 29, 2009 at 6:16pm

Hello Anna: Yes, Maggie was spayed early in her life. I did this because all of my other females who were unspayed, developed pyometra in their later years. It took the life of my first setter. I had talked with a member of Ohio's Irish Setter Club, and described Maggie's coat. This person said that it was a "Spay Coat", so there must be some truth to this phenomenon. Maggie's coat is soft and fluffy. It is very light, like down on a bird. Also, unlike my other setters, Maggie never sheds. The coat is very difficult to groom. It matts easily. I have tried all of the specialized brushes and combs that are designed to remove an undercoat, but they do little or nothing with Mag's coat. I never have had her hair cut. Most Sincerely, Paul

Comment by Catherine Carter on May 30, 2009 at 2:33am

Hello Paul, My Billy was castrated at 7 because of recurring prostate problems. You can see on my page ...his coat is very fluffy too....sadly he died earlier this year(aged 11 and a half) of a suspected tumour to the prostate.So I would say that definetely spaying or castrating has a direct influence on the coat.

Comment by Anna Kazimierowicz on May 31, 2009 at 5:50pm

Thanks Paul for answer.
Maggie looks very nice, she is very beautiful but you have a lot of combing after walks esp. when she get burrs, leaves or grass in coat.
So many opinions about connection between castration and coat are correct.
My Bajka was also spayed because of tumour in teat, she was 8 at the moment of surgery but earlier she had puppies once.Her coat is normal, in my opinion. She never had very rich coat. After spaying I didn't see any changes in her behaviour and appearance.
By the way, your surname shows that you have Polish roots;))))
Greetings from yours ancestors homeland
Anna with Bajka and Kruszyna

Comment